World Ahead
by Gia Pang
Summary: AU SAO Reboot. Kirito was strong on his own, but what if he grew tired of the loner path? Heeding Klein's advice, Kirito becomes Fuurinkazan 's newest recruit. Familiar faces but different events. See how the world is when Kirito has a guild he belongs to.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary**: AU SAO. Kirito tried the path of a loner but finds it wanting. Heeding Klein's advice, Kirito will be «Fuurinkazan»'s newest recruit.

**Disclaimer**: The story here is non-profit and for purely entertainment purposes; nor is it affiliated to ASCII Media Works, Yen Press, or any other publishers. The novel series belongs to Reki Kawahara and the plot belongs to me.

**Author** **Notes**: This is likely to be a long story, though with irregular updates. The characters of SAO have a lot of potential and I wanted to delve into their relationships. Beta'd by my love.

The title is a phrase from _The Lord of the Rings_: "Home is behind, the world ahead, and there are many paths to tread,"

* * *

Chapter 1

Footsteps echoed across the great hall of Black Iron Palace. Sunlight streamed down the large, arched windows, casting light against the dark frames of the Monument of Life.

Kirito brushed strands of hair that were falling in front of his eyes. He surveyed the scores of names that had breathed life just weeks before. His eyes scanned the columns, flicking habitually to his own username, before traveling across and landing on a name: « Klein ». A rough smile tugged at his lips.

Doors crashing against granite walls broke Kirito from his stare. He turned around, quietly stepping back as three figures rushed straight towards the monument.

"Do you see his name?!"

"Calm down damnit, I'm trying to look—"

"I told him, I said don't do it, and the idiot went and got himself killed!"

"Don't say that, Bast, let Ayde look."

Kirito eased himself against the wall, fairly confident they would not notice him for the moment. The tallest of the three, Ayde, Kirito presumed, was scouring the board for their supposed idiot friend. He had half a mind to slip away while their attention was elsewhere; but his feet remained rooted to the ground.

"Damnit," Ayde yelled, slamming clenched fists against the board, "Damnit, damnit, damnit!"

Behind him, Bast fell to his knees.

"Idiot," Bast whispered, "that stupid idiot."

"Look again, Ayde, one more time. Maybe he—"

"Shut up, Zee, I looked already. He's not there."

Ayde's hands slid down the board and fell uselessly to his side.

Kirito's eyes slid away from the sight and he turned on his heel to walk out. The three players did not stir from their spots, not even when Kirito pushed the doors open and let it shut loudly behind him.

Breathing in deeply, Kirito looked out at the square around him. Players were walking and talking, voices animated and hands moving. The excitement of the first town opening on the second floor still lingered. He might have shared their enthusiasm, but after the debacle during the first boss fight, Kirito wasn't in any mood to celebrate. Although the « Coat of Midnight » was safely stored in his inventory, the symbol of what the coat now represented weighed heavily on his mind.

"Beater, huh," Kirito muttered to himself, waiting for some players to pass him as he walked along the roads, heading towards the archway that would lead him out of the city. He passed through the market; the area was bustling with people and NPCs alike. Kirito had no use for this area but he wasn't quite ready to head back to « Urbus » just yet. He had to stop by « Tolbana » to meet up with Klein. It had been a couple weeks since he last saw his friend; it would be good to see someone who wouldn't immediately despise his appearance.

More than that, the 30 minute walk to « Tolbana » would give Kirito some peace and quiet. No players, no distractions, just the scenery to enjoy.

* * *

Klein stepped inside the town's diner, yawning as he was greeted by the familiar aroma of coffee and breakfast. The waitress guided him to an empty wooden booth against the corner windows, allowing full view of the streets in front.

"Is this alright?" the waitress asked, hands gesturing to the plain table before him.

He nodded, then remembering himself, spoke "Yes, thanks."

Klein wondered if NPCs were programmed to understand a bob of the head. Either way, she seemed satisfied with his response and handed him a menu before leaving to await the next customer.

The bench creaked unevenly against the floor as he shifted his weight in his seat. His hand traced the coarse edges of the table as he skimmed over the menu. His stomach growled knowingly, tugging at him to order anything that sounded even slightly edible. He swallowed, struggling to wipe the drool off his face. He was tired of eating whatever food his team had cooked in the field. Surely, their combined cooking level must add up to -10.

"Black coffee, thank you."

A different waitress had come to take his order and quickly returned with his coffee in hand. Klein inhaled contentedly as the smell of his coffee wafted from his mug. He took a small sip, eyes roaming the diner. Other players sat around the tables, talking over food and drinks. Klein lingered at one table, eying a particularly sumptuous looking plate carrying various meats and steamed vegetables. He glanced up to see who had ordered such a meal and met the curious eyes of a pretty brunette. She was holding her utensils in midair, as if the feeling of his eyes on her meal had caused her to pause.

She raised one eyebrow coolly, her meaning clear, '_Can I eat now?'_

Klein gave her a wide grin, giving her a thumb of approval.

The nameless girl giggled, causing Klein to grin wider, and she turned her attention back to her meal. He wondered if he should try going over there to get her name. No one can resist Klein the Fine. He debated it for a solid minute before the door opened, three other female players making straight for the brunette's table. Klein watched them take seats at her table and cursed his luck, knowing full well that any plans to come over now would probably be difficult.

He saw the brunette gesture the other three to lean forward, and she looked meaningfully over to his table before saying something to the other three. The girls giggled, turning around to stare at him.

Not missing a beat, Klein sent them a full wink and a grin. His action sent all four of them giggling, not unkindly, before they turned back to their conversation.

Klein set the coffee mug down, his earlier sleepiness completely gone, and fiddled with his bandana. He caught sight of himself in the reflection of the window.

'_Damn, I knew it_,' he thought, '_Bandanas are so cool.'_

He had worn his bandana since the start, his good luck charm now. He had spent the last month learning the basic mechanics with his friends. Despite this, his friends never joined in on the bandana-wearing fad. Truth was, Klein had felt comforted with the presence of his real life buddies, the danger seemingly lessened. They were his brothers now. And he was proud to fight alongside them. Slowly but surely, they were improving and they would catch up with the group that had defeated the first boss. They would catch up to Kirito.

Deciding that he had waited long enough, Klein placed his thumb and index finger together and performed a swift downward motion, causing the user interface to open. He navigated to the messaging tab and selected « Kirito ».

_"Yo, Kirito... I am starving. Where are you?"_

_"Yo, Kirito...so hungry."_

_"Yo… can't hold out any… longer. Losing lifepoints… fading away…"_

_"Kirito...are you even getting these?"_

_"Kirito...hey… are you ignoring me right now? Damn you."_

As Klein sent his last message, he noticed Kirito casually stroll through the doorway. He waved and Kirito returned the greeting lazily.

"Hey, looks like you're still alive, Klein."

"'Hey,' he says," Klein grumbled, "did you even get my messages."

"I was late only three minutes."

"Sure, ignore my messages," he continued grumbling, watching Kirito take a seat. "You going to order anything?'

"No, I'm okay."

"Hmph," Klein grunted, then raising his hand in the air to grab the attention of an NPC, "Suit yourself! I'll have the farmer breakfast and another coffee for the kid."

A waitress brought a plate of toast, eggs, sausage and bacon and Klein murmured his appreciation, with knife and fork in hand.

Kirito smiled as Klein gorged himself.

"You know what's a plus about being trapped here, Kirito?" Klein said, as he lifted a strip of bacon into the air and nibbled it down nimbly.

"What?" Kirito replied dryly.

"I can eat and eat, and never get fat!" Klein said, smiling proudly. "Cholesterol? Diabetes? Heart attacks? Not here my friend!"

Klein laughed loudly, almost choking on his piece of toast.

"Anyway," Kirito interjected after Klein finally recovered, "What's going on?"

"I should be asking you that. Eh, 'Beater'?"

"Oh that," Kirito slung an arm over the back of his chair, "It took care of some things."

"Well, I hope it was worth it because every time that word is brought up, a crazy look goes over everyone's faces."

"People will forget about it in time."

"What went on in there, with that boss?"

Kirito closed his eyes. The details flooded back to him now. Illfang the Kobold Lord smirking arrogantly as Diabel, charismatic Diabel, faded. Kirito shivered as his last words still rang in his ear. _Please finish_. The rest was a blur. Desperation. A lucky rally.

Klein listened. He had stood at the Monument of Life on the day Illfang was attacked, eyes diligently watching for any change in the names of the raid group. A crowd had stood with him and more had joined as news spread that a group of players sought to challenge the first boss. Word of their victory had spread quickly, along with word of a black haired swordsman who betrayed them all for the boss loot. Beater.

"Just watch your back," Klein pointed a fork between bites, "that's all I'm saying. And besides that, when are you going to join my group? There's still room for you, you know."

"Maybe next time," he said easily, "I'm still training. Anyway, why did you call me?"

"It's KK time."

"What time?"

"KK time, like Kirito and Klein time."

"Sounds dirty."

"Only if you're a dirty person," Klein teased, "My, is our little Kirito growing up? I can introduce you to those girls over there if you want."

Klein laughed as Kirito blushed when he pointed toward the table of girls he had met eyes with earlier.

"Anyway, you remember the town opening for « Urbus » last week?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Kirito asked, gesturing him to continue.

"A group of players thought they could log out from that level. As if this area was bugged, but not up there."

"Were they right?"

"No, I suppose not. It didn't take long for them to realize the place was locked down too. Some of them lost it, just ran out into the field."

"Sounds like a mess."

Klein leaned back, not wanting to imagine what happened, but unable to hold back his imagination.

"Kirito, the reason I called you was..."

Klein didn't want to say it was because he was concerned for Kirito or that he often thought of the guy who declined his invitation to venture alone instead.

Kirito was looking at him now.

"Let's team up for a bit." Klein decided.

Feeling Kirito's hesitation, he added, "Think of it as you owing me for covering breakfast."

"But I didn't get anything."

"Yeah, well… coffee's not cheap you know!"

Klein quickly stood up to prevent further protests and shuffled to the door.

"Klein, wait!" Kirito hollered, "You forgot to pay!"

* * *

The sun was still up when Klein and Kirito ventured out into the field. Klein had already pulled out his curved blade, looking intently at the boars and and wolf-like monsters in the distance. A distant buzz could also be picked up, a sign of the wasp-type insect monsters that were known to inhabit the grasslands.

"Haven't you already learned how to fight these?" Kirito asked, rubbing the back of his head as he surveyed the area.

"I need to level up somehow, don't I? I've got « Reaver », « Slash », « Upper Slice », « Fury Spike », and « Fury Arc »."

"There must be some similarities to the one-handed sword, like « Vertical » and « Horizontal »?"

"Oh!" Klein, who had been ticking his fingers off at each attack, raised another two at Kirito's words. "Yeah, moving the sword horizontally and vertically is something I can do with my one-handed curved sword too."

Kirito nodded, gazing far off towards the « Starting City » with a thoughtful expression on his face. "Any leaps yet? I've got « Sonic Leap ». It's just a simple top to bottom vertical slash. It can come in handy for certain monsters."

"Well, I need to figure out how to trigger it first. I could give it a shot with one of these boars here." Klein gestured towards a boar that was walking nearby.

"I think I have a better way for you to train your skills and give you better EXP for your efforts."

Kirito gestured vaguely northwest, "The forest region has stronger monsters so we can really get to toughening you up."

"Hey now," Klein put his hands up, "I wanted to party with you to get a little help here and there. I don't know how I'll fare this early in the game. You want me dead huh?"

"You'll never get stronger if you don't tackle bigger enemies."

"I was afraid you'd say that."

The trek to the northwest region of « Aincrad » did not take as long as Kirito thought it would. It probably had something to do with Klein chatting the whole way through, stopping to breathe just a few times before launching back into another story involving his group of friends. Kirito kept one ear listening to the story, and one out in their environment. Although it was still midday, it didn't rule out any opportunistic player killers who thought there were two unsuspecting players walking around.

"I want to start a guild with my buddies, Kirito. We're always partying together, so why not just make it official and put the guild stamp on it, so to speak."

Kirito nearly paused in his walk but kept going, nodding slowly. "You would be a good guild leader."

Klein puffed his chest up with pride. "Was there any doubt?"

Kirito kept his head forward to hide his smile. "But first, you need to level up. What are you now, level 5?"

"Level _5_," Klein sounded affronted, "What do you take me for? I'm nearly level 9. My guys are moving up level 7 and 8 too."

Kirito gave a long whistle. "Keeping the levels close. Nice job there."

"And what are you? Don't tell me...you're hovering around 12, aren't you? That smugness is making me itch."

Kirito shrugged, "Somewhere around there. And look, I can see the trees from here."

It was true. The trees lining the edge of the forest were coming into view. The forest looked welcoming at this distance, but Klein could guess that entering the forest might paint a different picture.

"Yeah, yeah, I see them. But you said 'somewhere' around there. What is it then, 13? 14?"

Kirito kept walking, gesturing Klein to walk faster as the forest loomed closer.

"You're 15, aren't you? You can't be more than that, unless you're not sleeping or killing frenzy boars all day long."

Kirito let out a laugh. "I have better things to do with my time than kill frenzy boars, Klein."

"Aha! You're 15 then? God, 15. What the heck are you doing by yourself Kirito. Do you even sleep?"

Kirito shrugged once. Then he gestured for Klein to pull out his weapon. They were standing just inside the lip of the forest. Patches of sunlight trailed down through parted leaves and tree limbs. No monsters in sight, as far as Klein could tell. But this region wasn't known to have many neutral monsters.

"The last time I was here, I was trying to complete the « Secret Medicine of the Forest » so I could get my « Anneal Blade »."

"Think we'll be running into the little nepents soon?" Klein looked around surreptitiously, holding his curved blade sword firmly, "I don't want to have a run-in with the ones that have the fruit on their heads attracting more of those monsters around."

"They probably wouldn't be this close to the edge, but once we get closer, anything can happen. For now, get ready to use those skills of yours. If we're lucky, you could get to level 9."

Klein grinned, "You helping me out, Kirito?"

"Pay attention," was all that Klein got. But it was good enough.

The two headed directly into the forest, Kirito leading them with sure steps. It did not take long before they were engaged in battle. The first was an insect-type monster; it looked like a wasp from afar, except its wings were leathery like a bat's. When the monster came closer, they made out the name hovering over its head: « Waspy »

Kirito attacked first, using « Slant », cutting a precise 45 degree angle at the monster. A sliver of health from the health bar was removed. Kirito lunged forward again, triggering what looked like a two-hit combo that did considerably more damage. Klein stood at the ready, watching around for any monsters that may be coming but also ready to switch if Kirito needed it. He could see that there were many similarities between one-handed sword and one-handed curved sword.

Around the halfway mark of the monster's health, Kirito called a switch and Klein jumped in. He lowered his stance and raised his sword, triggering « Reaver ». The motion caused him to jump forward with a fast thrust aimed at the monster's belly. Landing on the opposite side of the monster, Klein pivoted on his heel, bringing his sword up from his waist to slice at the monster's back.

The monster screeched, a high keening sound that pierced their ears. The monster beat its wings faster, sending a cutting wind towards Klein. Klein jumped back, simultaneously raising his sword and sliding it downward against the gust. A second gust of wind followed quickly, forcing Klein to jump quickly to the side.

"Klein!" Kirito called out.

"I'm fine, I can finish this!"

Klein got to his feet, both hands gripping his sword, and charged towards the monster. Once Klein came into range, he leaped into the air, raising his sword high. A single, top to bottom slash neatly sliced through « Waspy ». The small health that remained vanished, and the creature began to break off into fragments.

Dual screens appeared in front of Kirito and Klein.

« Result

EXP 37

Col 45

Items 2»

Klein pretended to blow smoke at the tip of his sword and sheathed his weapon.

"Man, I'm strong."

Kirito rolled his eyes, turning to target another Wasp.

"What enhancements does your sword have?" Kirito said, thrusting his Anneal Blade into the wasp's head.

Switching with Kirito, Klein slashed downward with his sword, landing a critical strike. He leaned forward and neatly followed up his attack with a clean horizontal cut.

"+1 accuracy and +1 sharpness." .

"Not bad. It should be easy for us to get materials for +3."

"Oh yeah?" Klein replied, sorting through his inventory, "Good idea!"

Klein finished another wasp. Gasping for breath, he raised his hands in the air, motioning for a break. He dropped to a squat, placing his hands on his knees. He sat down, pressing his back against the tree.

"What was it that you said about, eating anything you want?" Kirito teased.

Klein crossed his arms, glaring at Kirito. He grabbed a water from his inventory and gulped it down. His neck leaned against the tree. The sensation of heat subsided slightly as a small wind blew across the sweat dripping from his face.

"Damn," Klein said, drawing his arm upward to dry off his face, "I'm beater."

Kirito smirked. "Don't you mean beat? If I remember elementary school correctly, the phrase is I'm beat."

"Get it? It's a joke, because they call you beater. And I'm tired, like beat, beater..beat..."

Kirito rolled his eyes, pretending to kick at Klein's prone body. "It's not funny if you have to explain it."

"Joke of the day, my friend. Quality," Klein chuckled, "Some people just can't handle it. Have you heard of the phrase, 'pearls before swine'?"

Klein patted himself on the back.

"Have you heard of the phrase, 'don't quit your day jo—" Kirito said, turning to face his friend, "Did you just pat yourself on the back?"

"Yeah, it was too good."

Wiping the dust off the back of his pants, Klein stood up slowly, groaning.

"Forty stingers, thirty-five teeth," Klein listed, "Let's go find my blacksmith buddy so that he can glue them onto my sword or something. And you can finally meet the group that you'll be joining."

Kirito remained silent, but followed Klein.

They walked alongside each other, on the dirt path toward « Tolbana ». Klein stepped casually with his arms resting behind his head, whistling an unfamiliar tune. His armor seemed an even deeper shade, as it reflected the setting sun.

Kirito kept his eyes forward, making no attempt to silence Klein's humming. Their talking had died down, both probably looking forward to a good meal and a night at the inn. He reckoned they were 10 minutes away from their destination. He thought about the three players he had seen earlier, frantically searching for their friend's name in vain. They were probably still mourning. He wondered if they blamed themselves. When would be his turn? He stole a glance at his smiling friend. And Klein? Even the faint happiness now seemed so fragile.

"Do you ever wonder what will happen to us?" Kirito asked quietly, breaking his silence.

Klein kept his pace, though his whistling died down.

"All the time," Klein admitted softly, staring at the ground now, "Every fight reminds me."

"Me too."

Klein nodded, placing a hand on Kirito's shoulder, scrunching his mouth in deep thought.

"That's why its dangerous to go alone, Kirito. It's not just a game anymore. You're what… 15, 16 years old? It only gets harder from here. You know that more than I 's why you have to join us. Hell, we need you. And maybe you need us too. Just…" Klein paused, exasperation in his voice, "Just think about it."

"Thanks, Klein." he answered, sending his friend a small smile, "I'll think about it seriously."

* * *

Inside a small inn on the outskirts of « Urbas », a brown-haired youth stood, staring spellbound at a crackling hearth. Behind him, players walked towards the bar or brushed past him to head upstairs to the beds. He remained still, undisturbed by the jostling of the crowd inside.

To any casual observer, he appeared an unassuming player except for his spiky hair. The chest piece he wore was dull, even in the light of the fire. Small cracks and chips that traced along his shoulder pads were clearly visible, even without the aid of the oil lamps hanging from the inn's rafters. He wore maroon pants and simple leather boots; as common as any player entering the inn. The only part of his clothing that would cause any stray eye to pause was a deep gash in his chestpiece; inches above where his heart would be.

He reached his hand forward, as if to grasp at the flames dancing in front of his brown eyes. He was still, his mind in a memory.

Illfang the Kobold Lord towering above players. A sword raised threateningly in the air. The murky dungeon corners offering no sanctuary. Fear was thick in the air. Player after player charged Illfang, weapons striking where they could. It was inevitable that one of their own would be struck a fatal blow; it was only a question of who. And it was Diabel whose time had run out.

The player withdrew his hand, stepping to the side reflexively as three other people made their way to the stairs. His ears did not hear the laughter around him. They were still ringing with the cries of Diabel's teammates. Even his sleep held the sounds of the dying.

He turned swiftly from the hearth, heading straight to the bar where a few tall chairs were available.

"What's your poison?" the innkeeper NPC asked, hands busy wiping down an empty bottle.

"Warsteiner," he replied, "I want to start a tab."

The NPC stopped its motion, putting the empty bottle down and taking out a small notepad from his dirtied apron.

"Name," he asked gruffly.

"Kibaou. Close the tab at 100 col."

The innkeeper held out a hand. Kibaou tapped the NPC's hand once, fingers typing out 1-0-0 and depositing it in the inn's bank. Once he was paid, the innkeeper ducked down behind the bar, reemerging with a tall pint of foaming beer.

Kibaou reached forward, belatedly nodding his thanks towards the NPC's already retreating back as it went to another customer. Kibaou took large gulps, drinking half the tankard before putting it back on the bar.

He missed his friend. With Diabel gone, someone would have to take over. He could do it. He could lead the men like Diabel did, be a hero like Diabel. That was the best way he could honor him.

« Aincrad Liberation Party »

A guild that protects the weak, to free all the players from this game. Without the help of those damn beaters.


	2. Many Meetings

**Author** **Notes**: I wasn't kidding about irregular updates, but still hanging onto this story. Hope you enjoy. Beta'd by my love, as usual.

The title is a phrase from _The Lord of the Rings_: "Home is behind, the world ahead, and there are many paths to tread,"

* * *

Kirito watched the clouds above rolling past as he allowed his back to relax against the lush grass below him. It probably wasn't the best decision to choose to nap outside where anyone could pass, but Kirito didn't plan on staying long. His last conversation with Klein continued to play in his head.

'_That's why you have to join us. Hell, we need you...'_

There were benefits to being a part of a group, Kirito could not deny that, but it would mean an entire shift in his routine. He would have many more 'backs' to look after.

'_They could look after me too,' _the thought swirled in his mind. It was tempting but also terrifying. He liked Klein, he thought he could trust him, but he also didn't want to be let down when things became dire. Plus, what if he didn't get along with Klein's friends?

Kirito turned over onto his side, running his fingers through the blades of grass. He supposed if he didn't get along with the guild, he could just leave them. It would be a clean, easy break. Klein didn't seem like the type to hold grudges anyway. Coming to a decision, Kirito lifted his hand in a practiced motion to bring up the message system. He eyed Klein's name blinking in the sender box and began to type a short message.

"**That offer still on the table?"**

His hand drifted over the send button. Kirito shook his head at his own indecision and pressed send before he could change his mind. He guessed it wouldn't take long before Klein came calling. He just hoped the others hadn't formed any opinions about the Beaters everyone seemed to hate.

A ping to his right ear alerted Kirito to a message in his inbox.

"**Come to « Urbus » Kirito! You won't regret it, my friend!"**

With a tired smile, Kirito leapt up from the ground and pulled up his inventory, fingers deftly navigating to select a teleport crystal. He soon held the eight-sided crystal in the palm of his hand and watched the brilliant blue sparkle.

Kirito took a deep breath and spoke, "Teleport Urbus."

* * *

**World Ahead**

By Gia Pang

_Chapter Two: Many Meetings_

* * *

Klein shook his head frantically, raising a finger to his lips as he motioned the others to follow behind him quietly. Their target was sitting beside the water fountain; a stroke of luck as the sounds of the moving water would mask their footsteps.

"That bastard told me he was buying milk, _milk_!"

"Let me get the first punch in, Klein. Let me at 'im!"

Greatly amused, Klein looked ahead of the group and judged the amount of steps it would take to circle the fountain.

"Dynamm, Harry One," Klein whispered, "Move to the target's left. Make sure he's not getting away."

The two named individuals nodded, stealthily moving forward. They paused by a building with an awning covering stacked crates. It was a good place to hide behind.

"Issin, Kunimittz, let's wait until he makes his move."

The three moved to the right of the fountain, spotting a table that allowed an unobstructed view of the fountain. The three seated themselves and waited for their 'target' to reveal the reasons for his mysterious behavior.

The 'target' in question remained seated, occasionally glancing to his left and right, but entirely unaware of the five pairs of eyes regarding his position.

"Dale~!"

At the sound of his name, Dale perked up and looked towards the sound of the feminine voice calling his name. A brunette girl came forward, a basket looped over one arm while her other arm was waving excitedly. She joined Dale on the water fountain, sitting fairly close and oblivious to Dale's red face.

"I hope you're not too hungry," she teased as she opened the basket in her lap, "I just brought bread and cream but it's really delicious!"

"Uh, no, not at all." Dale stammered. "I mean, I am hungry but not too hungry."

She held out bread with a generous portion of cream on top towards him. Dale accepted the food carefully and bit into it when he saw her waiting for him to take a bite.

"It's good," Dale agreed after swallowing, "You should eat some too instead of watching me."

"It's more entertaining watching you eat," she teased again as she prepared her own food.

The pair lapsed into a comfortable silence until Dale cleared his throat. "So how have you been doing, Shelley?"

Shelley finished off the last bite before turning to speak, "Okay, I suppose. Hana and Ira leveled yesterday, but it's getting harder on our own."

"Are you joining any guilds then?"

"Hana mentioned Aincraft Liberation Party. A lot of people are talking about it now. Have you heard of them?"

Dale nodded slowly, "A little. I don't know much."

"There were a lot of people talking about them today. We'll see if it catches on." Shelley shrugged, "It's a new guild so maybe I'll wait until they get some more members, huh? Unless you and your friends are thinking of starting a guild, huh?" She nudged Dale in the side, repeating the action until the other smiled back at her.

Appeased, she looked at him closely, "So when are you going to let me meet your friends?"

Dale's smile became a little strained. "Uh…"

"Are they going to tease you or something?"

"Well, no…"

"You worried they'll tell me embarrassing things about you?" Shelley continued questioning.

"I-It's not that," Dale protested.

"You keeping me to yourself then? Should I feel honored?" Shelley leaned forward, delighting in Dale's expression. He was fun to tease.

"Well, well, well," came the slow drawl of a very familiar voice, "shopping for milk, huh, Dale?"

Shelley turned around at the sound of the voice while Dale blanched when he took in the sight of his smirking friends stepping into view.

"H-Hey, guys," Dale stood up quickly, glancing uncertainly between Shelley and the others. "I was going to meet up with you later."

"I can see why," Issin called, sending a friendly wink in Shelley's direction, "who's your friend?"

"I'm Shelley," she waved, "I didn't mean to hold up your friend if you guys were expecting him."

"Oh no," Klein walked over, throwing an arm across Dale's shoulders, "We were just worried Dale was having trouble finding his way back to us. But we can see he was in good hands."

Klein's teasing grin was matched perfectly by Shelley's twinkling eyes.

The teasing continued over Dale's head for the next 10 minutes. It seemed Shelley _and_ his friends had found a common interest: teasing Dale.

* * *

Asuna walked into a busy cafe and found a table towards the back. Lunch with Argo was the highlight of the day. Not only did she get useful information but she considered the mysterious player a reliable friend. She looked around at the other tables. Every table was filled with other players. It made Asuna painfully aware that she had no close knit group. She slid down in her seat, tugging her hood forward.

After some time had passed, a small hooded figure hopped on top of the bench to have a sit. Although her face was mostly concealed, Asuna noted the telltale whiskers poking out of the hood. The hooded person bowed her head in greeting.

"Fencer-san."

"You're late," Asuna said, dryly.

Argo leaned forward, grinning sheepishly.

"Oh yes, sorry about that. I just had to get the latest news on Taran village quests."

Asuna rested her cheek on her palm, smiling mischievously.

"You know, I had a lot of time to think while waiting for you," she trailed off, waiting for Argo to respond.

Argo sighed, "Yes, and what would you like to know this time?"

"Those whiskers you have, do you have them in real life too?"

A pause. "Wouldn't that be interesting?"

Asuna resisted the urge to stick her tongue out.

Argo and Asuna met often, most times out of love for good food. Argo would find the spots and Asuna would tag along. Argo would probably never know how much she needed these meetups. They kept her sane. She enjoyed being able to talk to another girl for once.

Argo insisted on paying for their meals. Asuna relented, mostly because she figured Argo was rolling in col. Information paid well. Today's meal had been a little on the pricey end but worth every bite.

They found themselves blending in the bustling crowds of the town center as they made their way through the streets. The current street was cobblestoned and slanted downward, occupied with an open marketplace, allowing players to sell their wares or herald their up and coming guilds.

"_High level blacksmith looking for work!—Divine Dragons!—Knights of the Blood!_" were some of the louder ones among the mingled voices.

A lanky looking boy ran up to them with a stack of fliers in hand. Despite his slim appearance, he had chubby cheeks and clear eyes; it was the kind of face that was unfamiliar to the troubles of struggle or responsibility. Despite their protests, he shoved paper into both of their hands.

"Aincraft Liberation Party!" the boy yelled, "led by the hero who slew Illfang!"

Asuna gave a discrete look toward Argo and was just about to protest when the boy quickly ran to another group of players. She skimmed the page and rolled her eyes.

"It seems Nibaou, the great hero of the 1st floor's dungeon, is requesting courageous recruits for his new guild," she scoffed in disbelief, "No beaters allowed though."

"You mean you don't remember him jumping to the rescue in there?" Argo replied, pretending to give a sincere look.

Asuna chuckled, "I must have forgotten that part."

She hadn't seen Agil or Kirito for some time, the two who had played the biggest roles in the Illfang fight.

"What have Agil-san and Kirito-kun been up to? I haven't seen them at the frontline meetings lately." Asuna asked, being careful not to show too much interest to the game's gossip queen.

"Oh? I know quite a bit. How much would you like to know?" Argo teased, then with a knowing smile, "Any specific interest? If I recall, this is the second time you've asked about Kir-"

"Just how both of them are doing," Asuna interrupted, twirling her fingers nervously, "No interest! And no, before you ask, I'm not paying any col, just curious!"

Argo laughed, "No need to get flustered. Agil-san has been working on his blacksmithing, told me he'll be back on the frontlines soon enough."

Argo glanced around casually, something she did when she was worried about eavesdroppers. Asuna always did wonder if those actions were obvious, but then again, she wasn't an information broker, much less "The Rat". Argo leaned in closer. Asuna could smell a hint of orange blossoms wafting from her friend. She made a mental note to ask Argo if they sold perfumes in-game.

"Meanwhile, Beater-san," Argo continued quietly, "has been keeping low. He's gotten quite a few death threats."

Asuna clenched her teeth slightly. How stupid could people get? Who knows how many more would have died without Kirito. They weren't there. They didn't risk their lives. The rumors had gotten outrageous, the latest being that the black swordsman killed Diabel with a slash to the back and stole the finishing blow.

"You should be careful too," Argo said seriously, "Just in case."

Asuna raised an eyebrow.

"You've partied with him and defended him," Argo explained.

"You should be the one taking care," Asuna pointed out, "Some people don't feel too kindly towards 'The Rat'."

Argo nodded in agreement.

"I do have many enemies," Argo confessed, then turning her head slightly to throw a wink, "but I'm not reckless like our black swordsman friend."

Asuna parted ways with Argo promising to bring her to a better restaurant. She watched her scurry away into the shadows, probably to chase after the latest intel. Though she found herself in the crowd, she frowned, feeling a tad lonely with the departure of her friend.

Asuna crossed her arms as she perused the marketplace. Thinking about Argo's warning made her subconsciously start rubbing her arm. She had never considered that she would have enemies. She hadn't done anything wrong, but she was smart enough to take Argo seriously.

Tugging her hood more tightly over her head, she continued briskly toward the NPC potion merchant location. She'd have to restock before heading back to the field. If she could find a good area, she'd be able to get a couple levels.

* * *

Kirito checked Klein's message again. _Urbus park center. Clocktower. 6:00pm Gametime Baby!_

He looked up at the proposed structure. As far as clock towers went, this clocktower was unlike anything Kirito would have imagined. Four obsidian pillars rose into the sky; the remaining sunlight that fell on pillars revealed a violet tinge in the rock. Kirito knew at night, the violet lines, like veins, would glow under the moonlight. Due to its dreary appearance, most people were reluctant to congregate around the area. It would afford Kirito and Klein's friends some privacy.

Since it appeared as though Kirito had arrived first, he settled down with his back to the tower and waited. He briefly considered making a quick stop at a vendor but the sound of people approaching changed his mind. He stood up just as Klein and his friends came into view.

"Yo, Kirito!"

Kirito smiled and raised his hand in greeting. He could see five other players talking animatedly while walking alongside Klein. Kirito resisted the urge to fidget as, one by one, five pairs of eyes focused on him. He still wasn't wearing the « Coat of Midnight » due to its recognizability. Kirito hoped that he would be able to don the item later on without too much trouble.

Klein urged his friends forward, "Kirito these are my buddies in arms. Issin—" A thin-faced man with spiky brown hair raised his hand, "—Harry One—" The jarring sound of metal was heard as the tallest player, dressed in full armor, raised his hand, "—Dynamm—" A bandana-wearing, goatee-faced player smiled in greeting, "—Kunimitz—" A blue-haired player holding a spear wiggled his eyebrows and raised his hand, "and lastly, our resident Romeo, Dale."

The remaining player, Dale, turned red while the others snickered behind their hands. Kirito could see a broadsword strapped across Dale's back. They seemed friendly.

"Hi, I'm Kirito," Kirito bowed, "Nice to meet you."

"Ease up, Kirito, you're too formal!" Klein groaned. He looked at his friends and then back to Kirito. It was easy to forget that Kirito was just a teenager with the way he spoke; Klein figured the kid was nervous about meeting his friends.

'_Acting tough but still a kiddo. Guess I'll have to ease him in.'_

Kirito shrugged. "So, 'Romeo', huh?" The question was directed at Dale and punctuated with a small smirk.

Kunimitz and Issin broke into explosive laughter as Dale began to splutter. Harry One came over, clapping Kirito heavily on the shoulder. Kirito nearly buckled under the weight of the armor but managed to stand tall and meet the other's smile.

"You're alright, Kirito, looking forward to hanging out."

Dynamm echoed Harry One's words, holding a thumbs up before patting Dale consolingly.

Klein decided to take back his previous assessment. Kirito was going to do just fine.

* * *

At one of the intersections in the city center of Urbus, there lay what the players referred to as the « Fountain of Dreams ». Kibaou stared idly into its shallow pool, counting the glimmering coins which filled the fountain's base. He decided against adding his own col. Lady Luck had already put him into this death trap. He didn't need to see what she'd do next.

A blue haired player approached and saluted.

Kibaou returned the gesture to his second-in-command, "How goes it, Sarda?"

"Great so far! We have nearly forty members now and surely more on the way," Sarda reported, beaming.

Kibaou smiled. Not bad after only the second day since the guild's formation.

"Yes, good work Sarda," he replied, "We're well on our way. We'll have a good showing at the next boss."

"And then home," Sarda added wistfully.

Kibaou's thoughts wandered once more to the fountain.

"Yeah."

He motioned for Sarda to follow him as he headed to meet the new members.

The sun had begun to set at their backs. They moved with their shadows leading the way, feet drumming against the dusty cobblestone street. Kibaou was silent. Sarda whistled a cheerful tune, arms swinging at his side.

Kibaou eyed Sarda in the corner of his eye. The blue hair framing Sarda's face reminded Kibaou strongly of Diabel; yet the similarity ended there as Sarda's wide brown eyes revealed a marked innocence that Diabel's lacked. There wasn't even a whiff of facial hair to be seen.

"How old are you Sarda?"

Players didn't usually ask each other about real world life. Something about etiquette. But who really cared now? Kibaou wondered if Sarda would even take offense.

"Seventeen," Sarda replied, then looking Kibaou once over, "Thirty?"

Kibaou scoffed, "Twenty-five, kid."

Sarda held both hands up in apology, while Kibaou grunted an acceptance.

"What're you going to do when you finally log out?"

Sarda looked up thoughtfully.

"I'm gonna ask out my crush. She's the prettiest girl in school. I don't know why I didn't before all this..." Sarda trailed off, but then remembered himself as they approached a group of people who had begun to stand as they approached.

"We're here."

The group threw clumsy salutes to which Kibaou replied crisply.

Kibaou approached the group, and went down the line to meet each recruit. He made a point of shaking each hand, trying to remember every face. Some were young. A few older. But all of them determined. They looked at him expectantly.

"I am Kibaou," he started slowly, "I am the commander here. I'm glad you could make it. We could definitely use you here."

Kibaou met the eyes of his recruits, but glanced off to the side as he struggled to find his words. He thought of Diabel again, the dull ache returning. Not now.

"When we stood in that courtyard, there were 10,000 of us. That seemed so long ago. And we all have someone we've lost... But here we all are, together now. I don't know what that madman has planned for us, but we'll make him pay."

* * *

Kirito walked with Klein and his friends as they made their way to a tavern in the city. A wooden sign swung from a lamppost above the building, bearing the words « Iron Pony ». They ducked through the low doorway and felt the immediate shift in the atmosphere. Hot gusts of air swept against their faces a they walked further in. There was a large, iron oven where a fire was crackling amongst large wooden logs. Two NPCs were taking out cast iron trays bearing food from the edge of the oven and placing them on thick towels on the bar.

Miraculously, they found a table sequestered to the back of the tavern. Kirito found himself sitting across Klein, and sandwiched between Dale and Kunimitz. It was only after they had ordered soups and bread that Klein leaned forward to speak.

"What do you guys think about forming a guild together? Maybe not right now but in the future, if we get others to hang with us?"

"Could we handle that, our own guild?" Harry One asked.

"Trying a dungeon as a guild or leading a large group of people, both of them seem pretty hard."

"Yeah, Dynamm here can't tie his own shoes without me showing him how to every morning. A guild might be too much for him."

Kirito watched avidly as Dynamm turned red and punched Kunimitz in the shoulder. The action jostled the table but luckily didn't attract the attention of others. Dale leaned forward, "Shelley mentioned Aincraft Liberation Party, word of that group is spreading."

Kirito shifted in his seat but made no comment. Klein eyed him speculatively before making an aborted gesture, "Yeah, I heard of them. They've supposedly got plans for tackling the bulbous bow blocking Taran village."

"How do you know about that," Dynamm asked, "And do they have that many people already?"

"I ran into Kibaou recently. He's got big plans." Klein's tone showed no interest in going into further detail.

Kirito looked up at Klein's face but the other was looking at an approaching NPC bearing a large wooden tray with seven steaming bowls. He placed them in front of each player and returned a moment later with a basket of bread. When he leaned over, Kirito realized the NPC was humming as he worked. The small detail was impressive if a little unnerving.

For a moment, the table was silent as they began eating. Kirito kept brushing elbows with the two on either side of him, but neither seemed to mind. Kirito was glad it wasn't always all boisterous talking. He didn't think he could offer anything more anyway since the mention of Kibaou triggered mixed feelings. He hadn't known Klein and Kibaou were even on speaking terms.

A loud bang interrupted Kirito's thoughts. Someone was standing in the doorway, gesturing frantically to two people seated nearby.

"What's going on over there?"

"What's wrong with him?"

Kirito narrowed his eyes at the scene. Not only did the two closest to the door rise, but three others stood up as well. They hurried out of the door.

"I'm going to—"

"Let's check—"

Kirito looked at Klein, surprised. The other had a hand on his arm, keeping him from leaping from the table over Kunimitz.

"Let's check it out then," Klein repeated with a meaningful look at Kirito, "I think Dynamm here is just about to burst from curiosity."

Dynamm rolled his eyes but nodded. Kirito nodded stiffly and waited for Kunimitz to slide out of the bench first. He was relieved when no one called him out on his knee jerk reaction. He didn't intend to be a hero, he just thought he might be able to do something.

The seven of them quickly headed outside the tavern. There was distant yelling from outside the safe premises of the town which prompted all of them into a run. Kirito kept his pace alongside Dynamm who looked pretty eager to get involved in whatever they were running towards.

There was a person standing near one of the large trees outside of Urbus, gesturing frantically to those gathering around him.

"He's going to die! He told me to get help. I didn't want to leave..."

As Kirito and the others approached, it became clear that it was another boy who looked to be younger than Kirito.

"My big brother. Please someone...someone help us!"

It was clear the boy was ready to give into hysterics. As Kirito made a move to approach the boy, another player with blue hair stepped forward to grab the boy's shoulder.

"Hold on, you gotta speak slower. Just tell us where you guys were separated and we'll save your brother."

The boy wiped his nose with his arm, sniffing to hold back tears. With his other hand, he pointed weakly into the forest.

The blue haired player nodded.

"That's good. Your name is Kai, right?"

The younger player nodded silently.

"We'll get your brother, Kai, you can count on us. Why don't you come with us so that your brother will know it's alright to trust us."

He turned around to address the group, "Everyone! We, the Aincraft Liberation Party, will lead the way. You are all welcome to join."

Without waiting for a response, they quickly made their way into the forest and disappeared.

Kirito and Klein traded glances. Klein just shrugged as if to say, _what were the odds?_

Kirito didn't mind another group taking the lead. Aincraft Liberation Party. Klein mentioned Kibaou was their guild leader. He wasn't looking forward to running into that guy again or rather, he preferred it if he never met Kibaou again. Kirito didn't recall if he had seen Kibaou in the small group that ran ahead, but it didn't rule out the possibility of Kibaou joining them later on.

"Well, well. Looks like we're gonna get some action, boys," Klein remarked, unsheathing his sword, "Just think Dale, you'll have a nice story to tell your new girlfriend!"

The others cheered with their weapons raised. Kirito shook his head in amusement as Dale grew red from embarrassment.

Klein ran forward to lead them along the same path that the young player had led the previous group. Kirito moved alongside Klein and glanced at the others keeping pace with them. The group had fallen silent, only the sound of quick footsteps over leaves could be heard. Moving off the main roads meant they'd run into a few monsters on the way. Stopping wasn't an option and the monsters would naturally chase them. Kirito just hoped there wouldn't be a long train of monsters trailing behind them by the time they reached their destination.

As they moved deeper into the forest, Kirito pulled his inventory up to double-check that he had a good stock of health potions. It was always best to be prepared.

"Hold on," Klein called, stopping abruptly at a fork in the path.

"Which way did they go?" Dynamm asked, turning to look down each path. He shuffled a foot across the ground but the little moonlight that filtered through the trees provided little illumination.

Kirito stepped beside Dynamm to peer ahead into the rightmost path. His gut instinct was telling him that that path was the most likely one but he couldn't see any obvious signs in the road to back it up. He turned back to the others, more than a little amused to see Issin drop to his knees and put his ear to the ground. There was no way—

"They took the right path," Issin said, pushing himself up and dusting off his knees.

Kirito blinked and looked to see how the others took this call. No one else looked as surprised as he felt.

"Could you really hear something," Kirito blurted out, stiffening when the entire group turned to look at him, "I just… haven't tried that before."

Not looking at all offended, Issin waved away Kirito's words. "Not hearing anything really, just feeling the vibrations on the ground. You think it only happens in the movies, and it probably does, but the psycho that made this game must've made it possible for any amateur to figure it out."

Harry One walked over and slung an arm across Issin's shoulders. "It's not a useful skill most of the time since you can't pick up monsters nearby but it works for other players."

"That's an interesting skill," Kirito commented, before turning to face Klein, "Ready to keep going?"

Klein looked pensive as he regarded the forked area.

"What's wrong Klein?"

"Just strange that we got separated from the people ahead of us so quickly."

The others were quiet for a moment, unsure about how to respond to the implications. Since they were no longer running, the eerie silence from the forest became more pronounced. Klein jerked his head to the left and the group, suddenly more alert, shifted further away from the fork and towards the bushes. It was only until they were crouched among the thick leaves that Klein deemed it safe enough to whisper.

"Something's wrong," Klein began, pausing once to check the path they left was still clear, "I think we should stay off the path but move alongside the right path to see what's going on up ahead."

"In pairs," inserted Dale, his face grim but determined.

"Good idea, I'll take the front with Issin. Form up as we move."

"We're an odd number," Kirito pointed out, "but I can take the rear."

"Shoot, I forgot for a second," Klein frowned, "How about I take it?"

"It's fine," Kirito shrugged, looking back towards the still empty road, "I'm used to doing it on my own anyway."

Since his tone was devoid of bitterness or sarcasm, the others made no comment. But Kirito missed the meaningful glances that were shared amongst the group. Dale mouthed the words 'later' and the others nodded in agreement.

"Let's go guys."

* * *

Sarda gripped his sword tighter as he scanned the group in front of him. There were eight of them, just two more than his own group. He didn't think they were outmanned but there was a distinct bloodlust in the air that caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand. This wasn't just a battle with people trying to be a nuisance.

"_Player killers_," the words were practically spat on the ground. Sarda couldn't blame the other player for being unable to reign in his distaste. He had his own feelings to grapple with after all.

'_I practically led them into this trap,'_ Sarda thought, eyes narrowing when he caught the eyes of the boy that had led them here. It was a small consolation but the boy did appear guilty. However, the player standing next to him with a hand on his shoulder showed who was the real mastermind behind this plan. _'He looks like his older brother.'_

"Now, now, no need to throw names around," admonished their supposed leader. "Kai did a good job rounding you fools up. It's your own fault for falling for it."

The other players in his group snickered while Kai seemed to shrink.

"The name's Tano," he jerked a finger to his chest, "and you've met Kai. I'd name the rest but I don't think it matters for soon-to-be dead players anyway."

"Why are you doing this?!"

"Why?" Tano produced a dagger and tapped it against his chin in thought. "I'm just doing a public service. Getting rid of the riffraff while I bide my time in the game."

"You have no right!" Sarda yelled, pointing his sword at Tano. "Don't you understand what you're doing here?!"

"Oh yes, of course I do." Tano grinned meanly. "Player killers. Can't be much more direct than that."

Sarda gave a wordless snarl, knowing it was futile to argue with someone that had no empathy. He took a half-step back until he was pressed back against another player. They had all formed a defensive circle so they could face any attack coming from the outside. It was a solid plan but Sarda couldn't ignore the probability of throwing daggers, especially since Tano was twirling his own dagger with a predatory gleam in his eye.

"Time to play gentlemen."

Sarda raised his sword before the phrase was finished, smiling grimly at the dagger that lodged itself into the ground in front of him. Similar sounds of clashing metal on either side of him meant the battle had begun.

There was a glint to his right.

"You're quick," the words were casually spoken, but Sarda ignored them in favor of holding his sword against Tano's heavier one.

Tano jumped back and the two began to circle each other as the rest of the players engaged in their own fights.

"Hope you're not too angry at Kai," Tano began, diving forward to thrust his sword but jumping back again to avoid Sarda's answering swipe, "He's still young."

"You're scum for using him," Sarda bit out, feinting to his right before swinging his sword at Tano's unprotected middle. He felt dark satisfaction at seeing some of Tano's health deplete.

To his credit, Tano didn't react with more than a wince before jumping back at a safer distance. They circled each other once more before Sarda lunged forward with his sword out. Tano blocked the thrust with his sword and pushed forward. Sparks flashed from the swords scraping together.

Sarda was sliding back, slowly getting pushed by Tano's brute strength. With a cry, he tore his sword away and threw his body to the side, narrowly dodging the sword that came down where his torso was moments before.

He only managed to rise to one knee before he had to block Tano's sword.

"Trash should stay on the ground," Tano growled, pressing down with all his might.

Sarda grit his teeth against the weight. As his mind raced with ways to turn the fight in his favor, a loud rustling to his left gave way to several battle cries.

"Chaaaaaaaarge!"

And suddenly a body flew into Tano's side, knocking him down to the ground and his sword a few feet away. Sarda could only blink in amazement as six other players erupted into the scene to help subdue the other PKers.

"Get off me you trash! I'll kill—"

Kirito held his sword under the other's neck to silence him.

"Just give me a reason." Kirito muttered, staring down at the other until his eyes were lowered.

Sarda rose to his feet and looked around. Everyone in his party were still standing, not to mention the health potions that were trading hands. He finally spotted Kai who was on his knees, staring at his brother in fear and worry. Sarda was torn between annoyance and sympathy for the younger player. He couldn't imagine that Kai was simply following his older brother's orders without more coercion involved. Walking over, he laid a gentle hand on the other's head.

"It's going to be alright."

Kai kept his eyes trained on his brother, but the head underneath Sarda's hand slowly nodded.

"I'm sorry," Kai whispered, "but please don't—don't hurt him. He's still my brother."

Sarda hummed noncommittally before turning to look at where Tano had been tackled. The black-haired player certainly looked serious enough to kill. But to take revenge on other players by killing them just didn't sit right in Sarda's book.

He cautiously approached the pair, eyes trained more on the sword at Tano's neck than the player's face.

"Hey there," Sarda started, "Thanks for getting him off me. It was a little too close there."

"You're welcome."

Sarda almost sighed at the simple reply.

"I'm Sarda. And you are?"

The black-haired player didn't respond right away, but after a short pause, he stepped back and pulled his sword from Tano. Two of Sarda's comrades came forward, one holding a length of rope and the other pointing his sword at the PK leader.

"It's Kirito."

When Sarda grasped the other's hand, he was struck by how young the other appeared. _'Young but… he's strong.'_

"Since we've tied up the last of them, we could take over for now," Sarda began, "do you want to help us bring them back to town?"

Kirito opened his mouth to respond before another voice cut in.

"Kirito! Come on!"

Kirito looked past Sarda's shoulder before turning back to him.

"Maybe. Depends on the boss." The last word was uttered with a strange lilt, as if it was a joke but one that Sarda wasn't privy to. Kirito nodded respectfully to Sarda before jogging over to the group he came with.

"W-Wait, what guild are you guys from?" Sarda yelled.

Kirito had stopped next to a player with a red and gold bandana across his forehead. They were far enough away that Sarda couldn't hear the words exchanged between them. Kirito frowned and made to punch the other player's shoulder. It was skillfully dodged.

Just as Sarda was about to yell again, another player from his own guild came up to him.

"Sir, how should we explain this back at town? They're not going to be all that friendly to PKers."

Sarda huffed. "We can't have a lynching mob on our hands."

He glanced back to where Kirito had gone only to find that the group was well off into the distance.

"Damn, didn't get their guild name…"

"Sir?

Sarda eyed the other group until they vanished from his sight, then he turned back to his friend.

"We'll just have to wing it when we get back. We can't hang around in this forest too long or we'll be battling monsters _and_ keeping them in check. Let's move out."

"Yes sir!"

As Sarda rallied the others to form a group around the captive PKers, his mind drifted back to the black-haired player.

'_If he's not in any guild, he could join ours…'_


	3. The Lonely Mountain, Part 1

**Author** **Notes**: Apologies for the wait. Enjoy the chapter!

The title is a phrase from "The Walking Song," in _The Lord of the Rings_: "Home is behind, the world ahead, And there are many paths to tread, Through shadows to the edge of night, Until the stars are all alight. The world behind and home ahead, We'll wander back to home and bed."

* * *

Kirito swiped a hand across his brow while Klein and the others cheered behind him. Multiple bird-like monsters stood in front of them, giving off a dying screech as they began to break off into fragments. Kirito didn't bother to look at the screen that popped up in front of him before he hit accept to the rewards of the battle. His inventory bag was getting steadily filled over the past few weeks, only to be cleared out when they came into town to sell what they could.

They were all focused on getting stronger; increasing their stats, their levels, and their gear. If Kirito was honest, it had been extremely awkward in the beginning. Not because he begrudged them for their lower levels, but because he had grown used to playing solo. He had assumed it wouldn't be too difficult to start assisting others but what Kirito discovered was that it _was_. Which made him admire Klein a little bit more for managing their small group and keeping morale up.

"What you thinking there, Kirito?"

Fingers wiggled themselves in front of Kirito's eyes. Kirito blinked and followed the hand up to Kunimitz's inquisitive gaze.

"Just thinking about our fearless leader," Kirito deadpanned, gesturing over to where Klein was whooping loudly over a dropped item. He was also doing a bizarre—at least bizarre in Kirito's opinion—victory dance with his arms thrown around Dale's and Issin's shoulders.

Kunimitz laughed and waved back when he caught Klein's eyes.

"Come on," Kunimitz suddenly called, grabbing Kirito's arm and dragging him towards the rest of the group, "You've got to celebrate too."

Kirito started to protest but he was dragged across the short distance and before he knew it, Dale pulled him in close and he was made to join in the celebratory dance.

* * *

**World Ahead**

By Gia Pang

_Chapter Three: The Lonely Mountain, Part 1_

* * *

« Do you want to create _Fuurinkazan_? »

« Cost: 100,000 col »

100,000 col. Countless monsters, money drops, and hundreds of miscellaneous items were traded for more col. It was tricky work because they didn't want to run themselves ragged. Once they started tallying the money, the knowledge of how close they were to their goal spurned them on to work longer in the field. In the end, each person had contributed a considerable amount of col to set up the guild. Klein imagined briefly what he could do with that much money. He could have a girl on each arm, the best food and gear, and Kirito groveling for scraps.

"Why are you smirking?" Kirito asked, blowing at a couple wayward strands that kept sliding in front of his face.

"Nothing that'd interest you," Klein laughed, mentally pushing the image aside.

Klein took a deep breath, scanning the textbox again. He checked and double-checked for the spelling. He scratched his head nervously while staring for what seemed like hours. He could feel the others glancing at him curiously but his finger remained wavering over the « Accept » prompt in front of him. He took a deep breath and pressed the button. The screen changed to _« Congratulations. Fuurinkazan has been created. You are the guild master. »_

Klein huffed and grinned widely at his friends, his new _guild mates_. He flashed a thumbs-up and was rewarded with cheers from the others.

"Well, our fearless leader," Kunimitz called out, sending a grin over at Kirito's eyeroll, "What's on the agenda for today? Back to the field?"

Klein immediately nodded, fingers moving automatically to pull a map of the 2nd floor. Walking forward so he stood at the center of his friends, he spread his hands out, as if expanding the map out with his fingers. Prompts popped up in front of the others asking if they would like to share in the observation of the map.

"_Whoa_, why didn't we do this sooner?" Harry One yelled, blinking widely as he looked down at the ground where the holographic map floated above the ground.

"We weren't a guild before," Klein reminded, "it's just one of the perks."

Kirito suddenly leaned forward, tracing a finger along the western border.

"The wasteland beyond the savanna…" Kirito scrunched his forehead as he regarded the map.

"What's over there? Any interesting? Something you saw in the beta version?"

Kirito stiffened at the last question. He cautiously looked up, noting the lack of angry faces first. Klein was off to the side, smiling apologetically but not looking too concerned by the question. Presuming this meant he was on his own, Kirito straightened back up and met their eyes.

"I didn't check that area out very well, but I heard from other testers that it was really difficult." Kirito attempted to shrug nonchalantly, but he wasn't sure how believable it looked to the others. "I don't think we should head in that direction."

Issin nodded thoughtfully, "Maybe we can check it out when we've covered the rest of the area."

Kirito quietly agreed, still not sure how the others felt about him being a beta tester. He had assumed they didn't know when they treated him so normally at the first meeting. Were they just waiting till the guild was formed to ask him?

"Don't look so glum Kirito!" came a cheerful call as a hand clapped him roughly on the back.

Kirito stumbled forward, turning around to see Harry One standing with a friendly grin. Kunimitz stood next to him, pointing his fingers in a 'V' over his forehead to mimic Kirito's serious face. It was hard to take the player seriously when he was always making funny faces. Kirito rolled his eyes automatically before he remembered he was supposed to feel awkward about realizing they knew his status as a previous beta tester.

The others laughed good-naturedly at his stunned expression. Dale stepped forward and placed a gentler hand on his shoulder.

"We knew you were a beta tester before. Klein had told us that first day. It doesn't change anything for us, promise."

Kirito couldn't help a quick look at the others' faces. He couldn't detect any guile on their expressions, just an openness that had become foreign to him in the game.

"Thanks, uh," Kirito cleared his throat, feeling something close to embarrassment, "I really, well, just—thanks."

Kirito was thankful that Dale did nothing more but give his shoulder a friendly squeeze before stepping back.

"Well," Klein called, clapping his hands with glee, "Back to the map, lads. Anything strike our fancy?"

Kunimitz walked towards the bottom the of map, swiping a hand through the hologram along the southern border. His finger stopped at a small brown cabin on top of what looked like a flat-topped mountain. There was no way to tell the height of the mountain based on the map.

"There's got to be a quest over there, and it's not too far from town if we need to restock or trade in some items."

"How tall is that mountain?" Issin asked, stepping closer to peer at the hologram. It was taller than the surrounding trees, but the scale was difficult to judge.

"Can't be too bad, I don't see it from this distance," Kunimitz joked, swinging around and cupped his hands around his eyes as if he was looking through binoculars. The buildings in Urbus stood in the way of Kunimitz's line of sight.

Issin snorted, nudging the other to cease his antics. "Sure, sure. If it's the tallest mountain on the floor, you're keeping first watch if we have to sleep there."

"Deal!" Kunimitz agreed quickly, throwing a hand out and grasping Issin's before the other could put his own out for a handshake.

There was silence as the others regarded the location. Kirito wracked his mind as he considered if he'd been to the area in the beta version. He did recall roaming the southern area and encountering some ox-type monsters but nothing like a cabin or human settlement. Either he bypassed it or was just added to the official release.

"Looks good to me."

Kirito heard Dale and the others murmur sounds of agreement. Klein vanished the map and made a motion to pull his own inventory up.

"Double-check your inventory to make sure there's nothing else you need. If we're all good, we can set out now and see if it's a quest we can tackle."

Kirito joined the others in the check but he had already done his own appraisal after their last fight with monsters in the field. He waited patiently for the others to affirm their readiness. This would be the first quest they completed as a guild. Kirito wasn't the superstitious type but his mom always had a saying about how the start of a journey can be the most dangerous one. He hoped it wouldn't be the case for their new guild. For all their sakes.

* * *

Klein peered up at the sun before looking across at the wide expanse of rock. There was a sparse scattering of trees to the left which would offer some shade. It wasn't a dense forest so it would be unlikely for them to be ambushed from other monsters or players, but it did provide some shade. There was nothing much to say about what was on the right side because the rock...dominated the rest of their field of vision.

"This mountain is huge," Kirito muttered, his droll tone causing a weak chuckle from Kunimitz who stood still beside him.

Everyone had their neck craned upwards as they took in how wide and how large the mountain they had been adventuring towards for the past half hour looked like. It was a pale-clay colored mountain, not unlike the ground they stood on. There wasn't much vegetation at the base of the mountain, save for a couple of parched looking bushes growing from large cracks in the ground.

"But at least there's stairs," Kunimitz reminded, gesturing towards stairs that were roughly hewn into the side of the mountain.

Kirito followed his line of sight to regard the stairs. They were about as simple as one would expect out of stairs carved from rock. There was no railing on the side, not even rope to find purchase on. He licked a finger and held it in the air. A gentle breeze stirred but nothing strong enough to tousle his hair. He looked over to where Klein had walked. The other was examining the line of stairs as it curved around to follow the mountain. Dale and Issin flanked him, saying something to Klein but it was just out of hearing. Kirito was tempted to offer moving up first to check it out but he had a feeling more than one person would be against that notion. If he had been on his own, he would be halfway up the stairs by now.

Dynamm and Harry One had wandered back towards the trees to see if it was suitable for camp if they decided to sleep overnight. The day was still early enough that they had some leeway to decide if they wanted to sleep in the inn again and just venture back in the morning.

Kunimitz was muttering and occasionally pouting as he looked at the mountain, but Kirito was aware that the other was staying at his side for a reason. They made sure no one was on his own, that everyone had back-up. It was automatic, Kirito could tell, and he wondered at how well they adapted to his addition to their group. Once again, Kirito had to give Klein a mental nod at how cohesive the group was.

"We could still try heading up the stairs," Kirito said, loud enough to clue in Kunimitz that he was being addressed, "Maybe there's a way up the rest of the mountain."

Kunimitz nodded, eyes flickering from the mountain to where their fellow guild mates were standing at the base of the stairs.

"I think so too. A mountain this size would mean stone steps of over two thousand." Kunimitz motioned him to follow as he approached Klein and the others.

"What are you guys thinking?" Kunimitz asked, tapping Dale on his shoulder.

"We can't see how far the stairs go but there might be more to see once we start climbing." Dale replied. He raised his hand abruptly to wave Dynamm and Harry One to join them. "We've come this far and we still have time to head back if the hike is too long."

"We don't know if there are monsters along the way or traps in the stairs so we need to move carefully," Klein began once he realized the rest of the guild had joined them, "Pair off, Dale take the rear."

Kirito watched silently as everyone seemed to find their partner instantly. Klein tugged him to the front. Kirito secretly preferred the front as he was used to confronting enemies first but he didn't think Klein would be so willing. It was relieving to know that the other wasn't always going to push him back just because of his age. Even if Kirito didn't want to say it out loud, he considered himself a strong player.

They moved as a single unit along the stairs. Apart from the wind becoming more brisk as they ascended, there was nothing to indicate any traps along the way. The silence that had descended earlier in the trek slowly lifted as small conversations began among them. Kirito maintained his silence, continually scanning the wall to their left for any kind of marking. He found it unlikely for a monster to be hovering around the mountain without being seen or heard by them. Based on what he had seen when he roamed the game on his own, the majority of encounters with monsters were in hidden rooms and passages. Assuming it applied to this mountain, Kirito was keeping an eye out for a stone lever or stone step that would trigger the opening of a passage into the mountain.

Klein abruptly stopped, throwing an arm out to halt the others' movement. Kirito looked around but couldn't see what was the cause for the pause.

"What's wrong Klein?"

"I thought I heard a… bell."

"A bell—_whoa_!"

A great rumble was heard from the mountain and for a moment, everyone was frantically grasping at the wall for fear of toppling over. No cracks appeared in the walkway but there was a distant boom heard above them that sounded like something heavy falling to the ground.

"I hope there's no ball rolling down the steps," Kunimitz joked.

"You never know," Kirito murmured darkly, "We could still get flattened."

"Quiet," Klein called, and motioned up ahead. "It flattened to a path now."

Sure enough, the steps leading them upwards had suddenly leveled out to horizontal path that suddenly veered left and upwards in the form of a ramp.

"Are we already at the top?"

Issin whistled in appreciation when he risked a quick peek over the ledge.

"Quite the drop from here guys, guess we made it."

They walked faster onto the flat plane and practically jogged the rest of the way until they stood on top of the mountain. Lush, green grass stretched before them. Tiny pink flowers popped in haphazard bunches from the ground. A massive cabin stood at the center of the area, large wooden logs making up the structure. The most distinct feature were the large windows dominating the anterior part of the cabin which were currently reflecting the sunlight overhead. Behind the cabin stood large fir trees, extending beyond like a great forest. It was the complete opposite of the terrain below. A forest oasis in the middle of a desert. The group was quiet in their observation of the area so they were able to hear the tinkling of bells in the distance.

The front door opened and an NPC stepped out, a golden exclamation mark hovering above his head. He had a fishing rod and bucket grasped in one hand and a small wicker basket in the other. Without a word, they moved forward while the NPC began to set up his fishing rod. A wooden stool was already propped up with the basket and bucket placed next to it. The male NPC remained silent, even when the group formed a semicircle behind him.

Kunimitz cleared his throat while Klein reached out and tapped the man on his shoulder.

"_Aaahh!_"

The bucket at the man's feet was unceremoniously kicked into the lake while his rod clattered to the ground. The NPC blinked up at them, his hat having fallen in his startlement. Bright blue eyes framed by wispy blonde hair met their equally surprised faces.

"_Visitors! How unexpected_," spoke the NPC, standing up with a laugh and brushing at his pants. "_Not many people bother to make the trek up here._"

"Why don't people come here?" Klein asked.

Kirito moved closer to the NPC, examining his attire and expression. Klein watched him patiently, expecting Kirito to offer some insight.

The NPC rubbed the back of his head, an embarrassed laugh escaping him. "_It's a long trek up the mountain, to be sure. The ones that come up are usually asking for what I make. I'm a jeweler, actually. They call me_ « Anaheim »."

"Anaheim," Dale began, "Do you take money for your jewels? Or do you need something to be done?"

"_Of course I take money!" _Anaheim gave another laugh and shook a finger at them._ "It's a lot of work you know! I'd lose my livelihood if I just gave away jewels left and right._"

He bent down to retrieve the wayward bucket and set it by the stool.

"_But I don't have anything for you right now. You're welcome to come by the cabin. I use the bottom floor to entertain guests but there's a small library upstairs if you want something to read._"

Dale scratched his head, turning to the others.

"Can't figure out what he wants. We could check his library for more clues."

Harry One plopped down on the ground next to Anaheim. "I'll keep an eye on him while you search the cabin."

Dale nodded, "I'll join you. Best not to split up."

"It might be a chain quest," Kirito said after a considering glance at the NPC. He walked towards the basket and peeked in. With a small, satisfied smile, he straightened and turned to the others. "I think our safest bet is to keep our number small while we check out his place."

"Why," asked Issin, "what was in the basket?"

Kirito leaned closer, "Seven sandwiches. Seven apples. Too much of a coincidence for it not to signal our number."

"That doesn't leave any food for Anaheim," Issin pointed out, "what if he wants an even number of players?"

"I considered that," Kirito gestured back to the basket, "but seven or eight means that we can split up safely without triggering a major event."

Issin mulled over his reasoning before nodding in acquiescence.

"Let's check all the rooms in the cabin!" Klein called, urging the others to follow him inside. Kirito brought up the rear, glancing once more at the Anaheim as Dale settled on the NPC's other side. Nothing in the scenery shifted when their party moved away which helped relieve any residual doubt in Kirito's mind. It was only when he had crossed the threshold to the cabin that he remembered hearing the sound of bells.

* * *

"He had _Lady Sylvia_, _The Crane Overhead_, and _Mister Ben Bunny_ on his nightstand."

Klein spread the books out on the grass.

"Hey Anaheim, do you, uh, like to read?"

"'Like to read,'" Kunimitz mouthed, rolling his eyes skyward, "Good one Dale!"

Dale elbowed him in response but kept his eyes trained on Anaheim. The NPC was still sitting in his stool, holding his rod steady as he fished. They had been sitting there for quite awhile but Anaheim hadn't shifted from his seat.

"_I have a library for a reason, you know!_"

It was the same response, or another variant of the response, that Anaheim had spoken after repeated questions.

Klein fell back against the grass and gave a loud sigh. "There's only so many things we can bring up. Why is triggering this quest so hard?"

Kirito ignored the whiny tone, surveying the random assortment of items they were able to carry from the cabin. A couple books, a basket of string, and a small wooden sword. They had immediately assumed there would be more NPCs in the home, like a wife and child, but the place was deserted. When asked about others living in the home, the NPC remained strangely silent.

_Ring… Ring… _

"Where is that coming from?" Klein wondered aloud, pushing himself back up.

"I hear it sometimes, but then it goes away."

"Maybe he has some chimes hanging around his house."

Kirito looked back at the NPC.

"Anaheim," Kirito called, "why are there bells ringing?"

Anaheim suddenly stiffened in his chair. He pulled immediately began to reel in his line. "_Bells you say? We must hurry back inside. They don't normally come this close but it's getting late._"

Blinking at the sudden actions of the NPC, they all gathered up and followed the NPC as he jogged back towards his home. Once the door was secured, he led them towards the dining area of his home. The fireplace that was off when they first searched the area was already lit.

"Who is 'they' Anaheim?"

Anaheim propped his fishing rod against the window and took a seat at the table. He steepled his fingers together and regarded Klein's party with seriousness.

"_Harpies_," Anaheim spoke solemnly, "_They live in the forest. They're evil creatures. A traveling caravan had set-up camp two nights ago deeper in the forest after passing my place. I offered to house them here but they declined._"

"Harpies," Kunimitz shuddered, "I don't think I want to run into them."

"_You don't_," agreed Anaheim, "_but they've become more a problem every passing year. They take important things from me. Tools I leave out when I'm mining. They're vile beasts._"

"Is that why you don't have any jewels for us?"

Anaheim nodded. "_I've been able to fend off one or two but they've been moving in larger groups now. I'm not enough on my own. Without the things they've taken, I can't continue._"

"We'll get it back for you, Anaheim."

Anaheim leaned back in surprise and smiled. The golden exclamation mark flashed once before switching to a question mark.

They all collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

"_Thank you, kind travelers!_" Anaheim pulled an antique watch from his pants pocket and regarded the time. "_I suggest roaming the forest soon. The harpies are known to sleep at this time after catching their meals. There should be a much more reduced number. You should search the_ « Encampment » _for my tools. I think they're keeping all the treasures there._"

Klein pulled open a map over the dining table and pointed to the new dot that appeared near their location.

"A search and retrieval quest with the occasional monster," Klein summed up. "With the NPC being a jeweler, we might get something worth our while."

"There should be minimal interaction with monsters for this. But it's good to know that most winged beasts have a strong defense. If we attack their back, we can do more damage." Kirito gestured towards Harry One. "Someone shielding would be good to keep near the front to block arrows."

Harry One grinned, "Count on me!"

"But Klein's right, it's mostly a search and retrieval quest. If we're careful, we shouldn't run into any enemies." Kirito reminded.

"Let's head out now, who knows how long those harpies will be sleeping for!"

They shuffled outside of the cabin and moved in pairs to the entrance of the forest. The sun was no longer directly overhead but it was still high enough to indicate how much time in the day they had. Harry One was leading their group with Klein occasionally leaning forward to murmur something in the other's ear. Kirito, who had partnered up with Klein, was keeping his head forward while his eyes scanned the area. As the NPC had hinted, they didn't encounter any harpies as they made their way towards the encampment. It was easy to find because there were still several tents and a large wooden caravan still parked around a long-dead campfire.

They spread around the area to look for anything that could belong to the jeweler. While there were plenty of pots and pans strewn about the area, no mining tools were visible.

Kirito heard a small, muffled sound at his feet when he stepped around the wooden caravan. There was a small sack that, upon shifting with the tip of his boot, revealed women's jewelry. There was a even a small gold mirror tucked inside with a transparent gauzy material wrapped around its reflective surface. Feeling a strange compulsion to pocket the item, Kirito added it to his inventory.

"Any luck?" Klein called. He was standing at the center of the encampment. Other members of the guild made their way to the center. Kirito took one more look around the area before joining. They all had one or two items in their inventory but no one was sure as to what the NPC was expecting. Dale had found two pick-axes but nothing else. Kunimitz was the only in the group pocketing the stacked firewood.

"Let's head back," Klein suggested, "we can sort through them back at the cabin."

The walk back to the cabin felt shorter than the trek into the forest. They walked single-file back into Anaheim's home where the NPC was still seated at the table.

Dale stepped forward and presented the pick-axes to Anaheim.

"_Thanks! I still have some in my shed, but extra _« 2 pick-axes » _doesn't hurt!_"

As each member stepped forward to present the tools, Anaheim continued to respond in a similar fashion. Klein stood back, scratching the back of his head as the items they had left to give dwindled down. Kirito had been waiting to go last and wondered if the items he found would be the ones to trigger the end of the quest.

"_Thanks! _« 56 stacked firewood » _will certainly keep me warm in the winter!_"

"Geez Kunimitz, _fifty-six?!_"

"They were just lying there, what was I supposed to do?"

"Oh I don't know, leave it at ten, not fifty!"

"And what if he wanted fifty stacked firewood, huh?!"

"That's absurd!"

Kirito wisely kept his mouth shut as the other members teased Kunimitz. He stepped forward, opening his inventory to transfer the items to Anaheim.

"_Where did you find this?_"

The talking in the background ceased as everyone turned to regard Anaheim. He had stood up from the chair, the items in Kirito's inventory now materialized on the table. The golden mirror from before was in Anaheim's hand. On the table was a gold necklace, a pair of lace gloves, and a small teddy-bear with one ear bent, nearly torn off.

"I found it by one of the caravans," Kirito started, "is it what you were looking for?"

Anaheim nodded, his expression very grave and very sad. He stood up and motioned for them to follow him. Without a word, they followed Anaheim out the front door. He veered abruptly to the right, making for a separate, but dense gathering of trees to the side of the home. It was when they were closer that they made out two gravestones sticking out from the ground. The engravings on the front were indiscernible but the words 'Mother' and 'Son' stood out prominently. Fresh flowers were laid out in front of both stones.

Although it was part of the game in the world, Kirito was disquieted by the somber scene in front of him. Anaheim immediately went to his knees before the grave stones and laid the the items in front of their former owners. When he placed the teddy bear next to the flowers, his hand lingered longer before falling away. Anaheim made no move to speak or gesture.

"Is the quest over?" Harry One whispered, shifting restlessly.

"_Ssshh!_ Give him some time!"

"_Give him_—are you nuts? Did picking up all that firewood addle your brain?!"

"Look!"

Two ghostly forms rose from the graves to stand on either side of Anaheim. The question mark over his head had disappeared entirely as the first ghost, what appeared to be his late wife, began to speak.

"_Thank you for bringing Anaheim peace. There is nothing in our graves, you see, nothing that he could bury before. Until now._"

She laid a hand on Anaheim's shoulder. Although the NPC didn't speak, he let out a relieved sigh. He remained kneeling.

"_Thank you for helping papa, misters! He can be happy now!_"

The young boy spoke while raising the ghostly form of the teddy bear his father laid down moments before, in his hands. He wiggled the bear's arms as if to say goodbye.

"Whoa. This is giving me the heebie-jeebies." Kunimitz shuddered, while peering from behind Klein's shoulder.

Kirito silently agreed but kept his eyes on the characters in front of him.

There was a ping in his ear before prompts appeared in front of them.

« Congratulations, you've completed the quest!

Result

EXP 250

Col 500

Items 1 »

Kirito clicked the prompt to find the item offered. The quest offered between three rewards, a helmet, a dagger, and a fishing rod. The stats on the items were better than Kirito had expected. Hearing the low murmurs of appreciation behind him, Kirito considered the dagger before ultimately choosing the helmet. Based on what he had seen in the past, he could probably get more from the blacksmith if had a helmet to melt down.

Loud laughter erupted behind him and he turned to find a very red-faced Dale half-seriously shaking Kunimitz by the collar.

"I want to level my cooking skills," Dale muttered, finally letting go of Kunimitz's shirt.

"You want to cook for Shelley, don't you," Kunimitz sang, clasping his hands together and making kissing faces.

"Cut it out," Dale spluttered, reddening at the mention of the female player's name, "don't just say her name out of nowhere!"

The humor of the situation was catching on to the rest but Klein cleared his throat to direct their attention back to Anaheim. He had been kneeling in front of the gravestones throughout the exchange but had now stood up to face them. There was a small smile on face and the ghostly forms of his wife and child slowly faded away behind him. Anaheim spread his hands out and stepped forward.

"_Thank you for finding these items. They belonged to my family. I cannot repay how much this means to me. Perhaps you would do me another kindness and stay the night before you continue your journey?_"

« Continue quest? »

"I guess a simple retrieval quest was only the beginning."

"What do you think, boss?"

Klein looked away from Anaheim to regard the others. Everyone was relaxed in their stance. Even Kirito, who had edged closer to Dale, had turned to him. They were all patiently waiting for his call. Their unspoken trust filled Klein with quiet wonder. He wanted to tell them he trusted them just the same as they trusted him. He hoped they understood, even though he couldn't get the words to come out right. Judging by the smiles and the thumbs-up being thrown his way, they had gotten the message.

"Let's do it."


End file.
